Christiana Akande

IMG_9920_finalChristiana Akande’s research interests include Educational Measurement, psychometrics and large scale assessment. Specifically, her research focuses on item response theory equating methods as it relates to multiple linking, evaluating item parameter Drift (IPD) and scale stability over time. She explores the conditions that threaten validity evidence for interpreting test scores and the consequences of basing high-stakes decisions on these scores. She has worked with Dr. David Miller as an assistant in program evaluations for National Science Foundation (NSF), Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and Veterans Affairs (VA) grants.

Christiana obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Benin, Nigeria in 2007. During her undergraduate years, she volunteered with some research teams for whom she performed duties like data collection and coordination of Focus Group Discussions. Upon graduation, she taught English Language and Verbal Reasoning at the elementary level for about a year. She also taught Business Studies, Mathematics, Economics and Principles of Accounts at the Middle and High school levels for about a year. Finally, she worked as a loan officer in the banking sector in Nigeria for eighteen months before joining the REM program at UF. She obtained her master’s in REM in 2015 and is currently in the doctoral program.

She is currently working on two papers about multiple linking and item parameter drift. Also, she is the current mayor of Tanglewood Village, UF Graduate and Family Housing. In 2014, she received the Certificate of Outstanding Academic Achievement Award from the UF International Center. In 2015, she received the Recognizing Outstanding Volunteers (ROV) Award as well as the International Honorary for Leaders in University Apartment Communities (IHLUAC) Award from UF department of Housing. Also in 2015, she received the Ralph D. Turlington Scholarship/Fellowship from the UF College of Education.